Alice Oppenheimer

When it rains, it pours!

What can I say to you! This month has been crazy busy, so much has gone on here at Headmore despite us having no competitions as all of the horses are qualified for the winter regionals.

We didn’t get off to a very good start as we had the weekend from hell! On the Saturday I was riding and somehow (I’m not quite sure how!) injured my neck despite the horse I was riding being an absolute saint! I was told not to ride for a while until it was all settled, but it wasn’t too desperate as Gayle was able to keep all of the horses ticking over until I could ride again... until she had a really nasty accident on the Sunday evening when the really level headed horse she was riding was spooked by a firework and panicked, leaving Gayle with a fractured pelvis, it never rains but it pours as they say!

Thankfully I managed to get back riding after a few days, and all of the horses are going fantastically and we are all pleased with how they are progressing so much in their training! Del has taken to all of the Grand Prix work like a duck to water, and Bracks is now established at small tour. Roll on next season!

Also, we have said goodbye this month to two lovely three year olds that were bred at Headmore. The first to go was Whybanquo, a Headmore grandchild bred by Mum’s best friend Anne Clark out of Headmore Leanora and by Woiwode. He was bought by Charlotte Dujardin to replace Fernandez, her International Grand Prix horse. They are a very exciting combination! We also said a very emotional farewell to another Woiwode gelding, this time out of our Rubinstein/ Donnerhall mare. Wimoweh (Tank) has gone to an absolutely wonderful home up north where he will be very much loved, nothing less than this absolutely delightful young horse deserves! We wish Tank and his new owner, Joanne Graham Whelan, the best of luck!

Now November is over and we are in the British Dressage summer season, the new rules have come in to force. This means that we now have to wear crash hats up to advanced and in young horse classes, as opposed to having the choice of wearing a beagler (a strapless hat). I was expecting this rule to be introduced sooner or later; I am pleased to say I put off buying a new beagler for that reason! I am indifferent about this rule as I always ride in a crash hat at home anyway and used to compete the young ones and sharp ones in a crash hat by choice, and there are now some really smart crash hats available. I have just received my new Antares hat to compete in, so I will be looking as smart as ever in the ring next year!

On a lighter note, with Gayle’s injury she struggles to get around, so goes in a wheelchair if there is a lot of walking involved. I am clearly an amateur wheelchair driver as, when we were shopping the other week, I managed to ground the wheelchair out coming out of a shop, Gayle and I had thought we’d be fine without a ramp... oops! It’s times like that when you have to laugh or you would cry, and at least we have been keeping ourselves amused!

Alice